Telephone and Data Systems (NYSE:TDS) Raised to “Hold” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Telephone and Data Systems (NYSE:TDS) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Monday morning.

Telephone and Data Systems Price Performance

TDS stock opened at $15.29 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.14 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a current ratio of 1.58. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $15.65 and a 200-day moving average price of $17.32. Telephone and Data Systems has a 52-week low of $6.43 and a 52-week high of $21.75.

Telephone and Data Systems (NYSE:TDS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 3rd. The Wireless communications provider reported $0.10 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.05) by $0.15. The company had revenue of $1.26 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.26 billion. Telephone and Data Systems had a negative net margin of 9.36% and a positive return on equity of 0.62%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.08) earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Telephone and Data Systems will post -1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Telephone and Data Systems Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were given a dividend of $0.19 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.97%. This is an increase from Telephone and Data Systems’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.19. Telephone and Data Systems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -15.61%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Telephone and Data Systems

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in TDS. New York State Teachers Retirement System raised its stake in Telephone and Data Systems by 5.1% during the 3rd quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 146,186 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $2,677,000 after buying an additional 7,045 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its stake in Telephone and Data Systems by 88.1% during the 3rd quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 53,947 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $913,000 after buying an additional 25,270 shares during the last quarter. Waldron Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Telephone and Data Systems during the 3rd quarter valued at $201,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its stake in Telephone and Data Systems by 1,252.7% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 598,138 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $10,952,000 after buying an additional 553,921 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC raised its stake in Telephone and Data Systems by 38.2% during the 3rd quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 51,943 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $951,000 after buying an additional 14,360 shares during the last quarter. 80.00% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Telephone and Data Systems

Telephone and Data Systems, Inc, a telecommunications company, provides communications services in the United States. It operates through two segments: UScellular and TDS Telecom. The company offers wireless solutions to consumers, and business and government customers, including a suite of connected Internet of things (IoT) solutions, and software applications for monitor and control, business automation/operations, communication, fleet and asset management, smart water solutions, private cellular networks and custom, and end-to-end IoT solutions; wireless priority services and quality priority and preemption options; smartphones and other handsets, tablets, wearables, mobile hotspots, fixed wireless home internet, and IoT devices; and accessories, such as cases, screen protectors, chargers, and memory cards, as well as consumer electronics, including audio, home automation and networking products.